The St Andrew’s School for Girls

newsletterHERITAGE FOUNDATION

Issue 10 • December 2016 • 1

ISSUE 10 | December 2016

Chairman’s message

Heritage, history and legacy are words very much in St Andrew’s vocabulary.

This year Johannesburg celebrated its 130th birthday: even though a relatively young city, Johannesburg has certainly packed a lot of history in this time. We can say the same about St Andrew’s, founded in 1902 when our City was only 16 years old.

Some years later, St Andrew’s co-founder Jean Fletcher purchased 108 morgen of Bedford Farm land and the Herbert Baker-designed homestead, Bedford Court, from the deceased estate of Sir George Farrar. All these years later Bedford Court remains at the heart of the school, well-used and well-loved. That it has a significant heritage is illustrated by the fact that it was one of just 27 buildings selected for the recently published book, Hidden Johannesburg. For more information about the book contact the Heritage Foundation.

The School often finds creative ways of preserving its history. A major project undertaken by the Foundation this year was the commissioning of a large wooden mural made from the trees that unfortunately had to be cut down when the school hall was extended - a photo of the mural is overleaf.

We can all be justifiably proud that 114 years on, St Andrew’s remains one of the country’s foremost, historic schools. It has a proud academic record, excels in sport, the arts and cultural activities and lives up to the school’s vision “skilled for life”. It is vital for us to maintain our standards of excellence and I once again appeal to our St Andrew’s community to continue your support, be it financial or through initiatives such as the MySchool Card programme.

My gratitude and sincere thanks to all our donors, the Board of Governors and Bev Smith, Head of the Heritage Foundation.

David Lowry

A glimpse of the book Hidden Johannesburg written by Paul Duncan and photographed by Alain Proust.

Copies of the book may be purchased from the Heritage Foundation office at R320 per copy (a saving of R70 off the retail price). A review says “... The book is a visual treat and a sensual delight for the armchair city walker, primarily because many of the photographs are of the interiors of unusual places.”

A new look for our school hall

The original hall was opened by Dr C S McLean, Chairman of the Board of Directors, on 12th

October 1951. Almost to the day 65 years later, our newly enlarged and refurbished school hall was rededicated on 7th October 2016.

Many features of historical importance such as the doors, windows and shutters have been retained or re-purposed into the newly created spaces.

The Junior and Senior School art students assisted Bronwen Findlay in creating the mosaic at the entrance to the hall; it represents the birds, flowers, trees and architectural features found on the school property.

NewsTalk

Issue 10 • December 2016 • 2

Heritage events

The St Andrew’s Heritage Foundation hosted two ‘Heritage Walks and Historical Mornings’

in February and June.

On both occasions staff and current parents were regaled with tales of early Johannesburg, the history of our school, the Farrar family and the work of the Foundation within the school. The Heritage Walks also highlight hidden gems on the school property.

Events and happenings

Above: participants in the February Heritage Walk and Historical morning. Below: guests who attended the Heritage event in June.

An early Christmas @ The Races Members of the St Andrew's community enjoyed a festive day of racing and fundraising at Turffontein Race Course on Saturday 22 October. The Foundation hosts this event every second year.

The Heritage Foundation once again hosted the Tea Garden at the Spring Expo. Guests were serenaded by the students and teachers of the St Andrew’s Music Department and served by the Grade 9s.Rachel and Carolynne Harrison in the Tea Garden, taking a

break from the Spring Expo activities.

Above: Vivi and Victoria Giannakopoulos (1987) with Bev Smith, Head of the St Andrew’s Heritage Foundation.

Left: Megan Wentzel (2010) with the Ziehm family and guests.

Issue 10 • December 2016 • 3

Connecting with our community

Since its inception, the Foundation has invited the

Matrics each year to attend the StAy Circle Tea. Bev Smith explains the role of the Foundation to the girls and the

benefits of "StAying" connected to the school and with one another once they leave.

Treated to hot chocolate and doughnuts are Erica Schnaar-Campbell, Clarissa Leo, Jabulile Nkuta, Devon Kampmann and Revana Laljith.

Bev Smith had the chance to chat to the 1986 Matric group at the Autumn Reunion, as they reminisced about their adventures in "Old Wing"!

Visitors to the Foundation The Heritage Foundation always enjoys welcoming Old Girls, past parents and members of our wider community to the school - let us know when you plan a visit!

Top: George and Toni Peters (Keylock,1979) were updated on new developments. Left: Jane Henderson (Head Girl,1971) on the balcony of Farrar dormitory, Bedford Court, remembering how as Head Girl she enjoyed this beautiful room overlooking the Matric Lawn. Right: Stuart Grigg and Tricia Blombery, a descendant of the Farrar family who settled in Australia, explored the former home of her great-uncle Sir George Farrar.

The wood from the trees that were cut down in the garden area near the Tea Lawns was cured

and used for the mural in the hall. The Heritage Foundation commissioned artist, Hannelie Coetzee, to create this beautiful wooden mural in exactly the spot where the trees grew; art students in the Senior School assisted her in mixing and applying colour.

Notice that sport in the school is represented by a diver literally diving off the wooden light switch! The two girls in the front remind us of the total solar eclipse in 1940 and the girls on the left are sitting in the shade of a jacaranda tree.

A stunning mural

Panoramic view of the mural

Issue 10 • December 2016 • 4

Thank you to our donors

Help us to continue the legacy of educational excellence at St Andrew’s School for Girls

Contacting usWe would love to see you or hear from you. For information, to update your details or to arrange a visit to St Andrew’s, contact Head of the Foundation Bev Smith (Schaafsma, 1983), who looks forward to re-connecting with past St Andrew’s families, staff and fellow Old Girls.

Tel: +27 (0)11 453 9408 ext 282; Cell: 083 297 8504; Email: heritage@standrews.co.za; Private Bag X 79001, Senderwood 2145 South Africa

Digital copies of all issues of NewsTalk are available on our website.

www.standrews.co.za

We invite all Old Girls and members of our wider St Andrew’s community to be part of our Legacy Campaign by pledging

R100 or more per month to the Foundation’s Endowment Fund. Our aim is to facilitate large, capital expenditure and provide the means to deliver the best possible education.

As the Foundation is a registered Public Benefit Organisation (PBO no 930031219), all donations are tax deductible in terms of Section 18A of the SA Income Tax Act. The current Act entitles individuals to deduct up to 10% of taxable income (prior to the deduction of medical expenses) in respect of donations to a registered PBO.

If you are thinking of making a bequest, contact us for our informative booklet on estate planning

which suggests tax effective measures for making a donation to an educational institution.

The St Andrew’s Heritage Foundation acknowledges with gratitude the donations from the following corporates and individuals for the period December 2015 to November 2016.

While every effort is made to record details correctly, if an error is detected please

contact the Heritage Foundation.

The MySchool Card

A tribute to Jenny RoganOur community was saddened by the news of the passing away on 9 March 2016 of Jenny Rogan, beloved wife of Allister Rogan, mother of Kate (1984), Nicky (1986), Don and Rob.

The Rogan family has been connected to St Andrew’s for over 40 years. Allister is the current Chairman of the St Andrew’s Trust and previous Chairman of both the Parents' Association and School Board of Directors.

Jenny will always be remembered by the St Andrew's community.

Allister and Jenny Rogan with Portia Buthelezi, Speech Night, October 2012.

Andrean AdvancementBeauty on FirstBookholane, Masechaba (2002)Boyd, Dr Sarah-Anne (1990)Clark, Bev (Wrighton,1983)Corthouts, Collette (current parent)Cridlan, Gail (Thorburn,1965)Du Plessis, Sue (Griffiths,1949)Ebell, Alison (staff)Eastern, Pat (past parent)Eckards NurseryFisher, Karen (staff)GaldermaGrové, Jacomi (past parent)Harrison Family (current parents)Henderson, Jane (Hobbs,1971)Hindley Ingrid (Watson,1988)Jackson, Pauline (past Executive Headmistress)Jones, Shelly (current parent)Keown FamilyLennox, Tandice (Gorton,1992)Lewis, Deidre (staff)Maccelari, Marianne (Starker,1981)Memories in MotionMilner, Lee (Head of the Pre-School)Myburgh, Nicola (Rogan,1986)Nolan, Nicola (Meyer,1994)Orpen, Alison (staff)Pepper, Lucea (staff)Peters, Toni (Keylock,1979)Prinsloo, Liesha (Pickard,1987)Ramke, Dawn (Steels,1951)Richardson Family (past parents)Rogan, Kate (1984)Serritslev, Anthea (Bolus,1963)Smith, Bev (Schaafsma,1983)StAy Circle (2015 Matrics)Supa Quick (Edenvale & Greenstone)Surmon, Anna (staff)Symons, Karen (Acting Executive Headmistress)Tucker, Kate (1973)Tuscani HairVerner, Sheila (past staff)Warner, Elizabeth (Mathieson,1959)Whitecross, Helenor (staff)Wilson Family (past parents)

A reminder that the Foundation is registered as a beneficiary of the MySchool card programme. We appeal to all our community who live in South Africa to register the St Andrew’s Heritage Foundation Trust as a beneficiary on the programme. All funds raised are allocated to the Foundation’s Endowment Fund and the Old Girls’ Bursary Fund.To join, either register online: www.myschool.co.za/supporter/apply; or call 0860 100 445.